Mark My Words: Winning at your worst moment

By Mark Rearden Columnist

Tuesday

May 8, 2018 at 6:45 PMMay 8, 2018 at 10:50 PM

Let me begin by saying I was not pulling for Patrick Reed in this year’s Masters Tournament.

My early favorites before the event even started were Bryson DeChambeau, Ricky Fowler and Jordan Spieth – Spieth and Fowler because they seem like good guys, and DeChambeau because he is a bit different and takes a different approach to playing golf than the rest of the field. He is likely a good guy as well, since I haven’t heard any real negativity surrounding him.

Not true of Patrick Reed. He may be a good guy, but there has been much negativity surrounding him.

This column, however, is not about Patrick Reed per se, but about how we scrutinize competitive athletes when the heat is on and they are under the microscope.

And I am not just talking about some guy at the golf club who hates to lose during the weekly “dogfight” when everyone plays their handicaps and he gets a bit miffed that Sam the Sandbagger always wins with that inflated handicap.

I also am not talking about the U.S. Tennis Association league matches on Saturdays when someone seems to call the lines pretty close when he needs a point.

No, these folks are just scratching the surface when it comes to competitiveness. I am talking about being truly competitive.

Being truly competitive involves a much deeper commitment to getting the “W” than merely hating to lose. A Patrick Reed-type has done far more than most of us will ever even contemplate to ensure he wins every single time he can. The number of hours on the practice court or tee box, the time spent reading and studying their craft and then applying all of that in the single-minded pursuit of being the best. That is a small piece of the competitive pie.

For many, winning is even more important than relationship. All of us have seen those folks who absolutely don’t care what you think about them; in fact, they will do anything to win. I have known players like that. I’ll be you have too. If what one reads is accurate then Patrick Reed may be an example of that.

But maybe not. Do any of us have unresolved issues with family? And if we do, how would that play out in the press? Would we seem the same to others as we do now?

So where am I going with all of this? I reiterate: This is not about Patrick Reed. He just happens to be the most recent celebrity the press has hammered. I am not about to make excuses for any athlete whose behavior is bad. I prefer confident, humble champions such as Roger Federer and coaches such asJohn Wooden.

West Lake Country Club’s head pro and I talked at length about this phenomenon the other day. We agreed: The embodiment of that type of champion only shows up every Halley’s Comet. The reason – it is near impossible to play or coach with that much passion and focus without losing it sometimes when things don’t go well on the field of competition.

How many of us could stand up to the scrutiny of the 24-hour news cycle that captures our every deed, good or bad? Even as mature adults it would be tough to look as sterile if a camera was in our face when your spouse forgot to pay the bill you promised the creditor was already handled. How about the line at the bank that closes as soon as you got to the front, or you back into a car when you were already late for an engagement?

Additionally, how many of us are the same person we were at 27? Were we a bit impetuous? Did we react before we thought? I know I did. And the big question is this: Do we want our entire bodies of work (our lives) defined by our worst three or four deeds? I sure don’t.

So, what I am asking of you is this: Let’s give the seemingly bad actors out there a bit more time and rate their performances on their “careers” rather than attitudes we may have owned in our youth as well. I feel like I read somewhere about not casting a stone unless you played error-free or something like that. I can’t remember.

Mark my words, one of you will remind me.

The writer is a master professional, certified by the U.S. Professional Tennis Association, and the director of tennis at West Lake Country Club in Martinez.

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